Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Scripture Thursday ~ Forgiveness

But I say unto you, Love your enemies,
bless them that curse you,
do good to them that hate you, and pray for them
which despitefully use you, and persecute you.
Matthew 5:44 (KJV)


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I was in my 20’s when my mother brought this verse to my attention.  I was struggling with the emotional turmoil of an older woman that hated me.  She hated me due to lies she believed about me.  It was at that time I learned a hard lesson about forgiveness, and praying for people that had wronged me. 

This woman didn’t ask me to forgive her and she was never remorseful for the hurtful things she said to me, but I chose to forgive and to pray for her.  In turn, it released me from bitterness taking root.

Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking,
be put away from you, with all malice:
And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted,
forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.
Ephesians 4:31-32 (KJV)


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There is a young woman in my life that is very dear to me.  I’ve known her since she was 4 years old and she is now 15.  She has this to say about forgiveness: 
Something I have noticed with forgiveness is, I end up needing to forgive someone more than once.  I will say I forgive someone, but do I really?  Sometimes I will still be bitter towards them and I know I haven’t completely forgiven them.  I wish I could forgive the way Jesus does.  It would be nice to forgive and forget.

Bearing with one another, and forgiving one another,
if anyone has a complaint against another;
even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.
Colossians 3:13
(NKJV)


When we harbor resentment and hatred in our hearts, we’re hurting ourselves and those that love us.  Healing can’t begin until you reach a point of forgiveness.  In 1999 Craig Scott was in the library of his high school – Columbine, when two shooters massacred his close friends and classmates in front of him.

He didn’t know until the next day that his sister Rachel Scott had been one of the first students killed in the cafeteria.  He tells how hatred and bitterness took root and consumed him.  A mentor shared some life changing words with him.

Forgiveness is like setting a prisoner free and finding out that prisoner was you.  

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Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.
Luke 6:28
(KJV)I’ll close with a very moving video of a dear woman of God, Corrie Ten Boom.  As a Holocaust survivor, Corrie endured horrific circumstances while in the concentration camps.  She tells in her own words, a situation where she came face to face with one she did not have the human strength to forgive. 

He extended his hand to her and asked forgiveness.  Listen to what she did when faced with this difficult situation.   If you don’t have time to watch it now, please come back to it.  It’s about 7 minutes long and well worth it.





Thank you so much for visiting today.  I hope and pray if bitterness and resentment has taken root in your heart, that you’ll consider the scriptures and seek the Lord’s help in forgiving.





18 comments:

  1. I am coming back to listen to Corrie ten Boom...running out of time just now. I don't want to miss this.

    Forgiveness is almost something that needs to be relearned every time we need to practice it. Good thing that the Lord is such a faithful teacher.

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  2. Beautiful! I especially like the victorian hand.

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  3. Your blog has blessed my day! Thank you for sharing!

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  4. I am new to your blog (thru Lady Lydia) and was in tears this morning over hurtful circumstances. This was from God. Thank you SO MUCH! Dee

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  5. I remeber talking about this in Bible study group or church last year. This is a very good and very hard thing to do.

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  6. Thank you for sharing these wonderful words of wisdom, along with your beautiful word art.

    I came over from Karen's Escape and am now following you.

    Blessing hugs,
    Teresa

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  7. A powerful word and powerful to hear it from her own lips. I remember reading that story of standing naked with her sister and weeping through it. So powerful to remember just what Christ suffered for us... the indignity of it all for me.

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  8. Thank you Abby - for me forgiveness is often a process, starting with my willingness to be obedient and to choose to forgive.
    Blessings
    Maxine

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  9. Thank you for the enormous blessing you have given me thru your post.

    D :)

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  10. God just has a way of using your posts to bless others, and I'm so grateful for the way you boldly share what He lays on your heart. It always meets a specific need in my life, and I praise God for that!

    Have a blessed week, my friend.
    Blessings,
    Karen L
    Word Art Wednesday

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  11. Abby, I hope you don't mind but I would love to add this post to my Inspiring Posts page?

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  12. Thank you Abby for this very meaningful lesson today. The video was so touching and so convicting, but isn't that what the Word of God is supposed to do? Show us were we fall short and accept His forgiveness and grace.Have a blessed weekend, my friend. B

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  13. What a wonderful post. I, too, have been taught many of these lessons over the years. They aren't easy, but oh, the sweet blessing of our obedience no matter what the other person does. My prayer is to pass this sweet and important concept on to my children and grandchildren. Thank you for the lovely encouragement on this blessed Sunday visit.

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  14. What a wonderful post about forgiveness, I say AMEN to all of it!
    Lovely freebies too -- thanks so much for taking the time to share both your wisdom and your art with us!

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  15. Beautiful post Abby! Interestingly enough I sent Chip a copy of The Hiding Place by Corrie TenBoom and he said that reading it impacted him more than any other book while being deployed. May we all continue to be thankful for the mercy God has shown to us and grow in His grace and mercy towards others.

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  16. Abby, I used to say I can forgive but not forget, and I have made progress with this way of thinking. Everyone deserves a second chance and we all do and say things that we hope will be forgiven and forgotten! I appreciate you kind inspiring daily words from the lord. Have a blessed day! Pam

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  17. Well I certainly needed that and was blessed by it today lo these nearly four years later!

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Your comments are blessings to my day.